


Inaction and Reaction

by JustAndrea



Category: Penn Zero: Part-Time Hero
Genre: Gen, Guns, threat of violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-30
Updated: 2016-09-30
Packaged: 2018-08-18 15:51:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,748
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8167535
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JustAndrea/pseuds/JustAndrea
Summary: Penn has definitely gotten used to being a hero - always taking action and saving the day without hesitation or failure. However, after a situation in his home dimension where he not only doesn’t save the day, but doesn’t even try, can he really call himself a hero?





	

Wind blew past the crowded cafe, its customers warm and relaxed inside it. Honestly, there was no better way to spend a cold Saturday. …Well, maybe there was. In fact, Penn was sure of it. But, when he had finals to study for, and still wanted to hang out with friends and have a bit of fun before work, this seemed like the best solution.

“Okay, I think I may finally have this formula memorized,” Penn announced with a small nod, pointing at his algebra notes with his pencil, “Now, I just have to make sure I get the right answer.”

“You’ve been getting better at it,” Boone commented with a smile, taking a sip of his hot cocoa before continuing, “Just remember how to foil, and you’ll be fine.”

“Thanks Boone,” Penn smiled back. Even if he was a bit jealous of his wiseman and how easily he was able to understand math, he certainly appreciated the help. Plus, Penn helped him focus when he had to write essays (and helped him in gym class sometimes), so it all balanced out.

A small groan made them turn to look at their friend across the table, who was rubbing her eyes and looking like she was about to throw her geography book out the window. “I swear, if I see one more map…”

“Need a break?” Penn asked, pushing her untouched hot cocoa towards her. Sashi gave him a small, appreciative smile before practically chugging her drink. Unable to help themselves, her friends watched in amazement as she drank the hot liquid without even flinching, and once she finished, she simply sighed. “I knew that finals were going to be harder in his school, but I didn’t think they would be unbearable.”

“Tell me about it,” Penn agreed, “Also, didn’t that burn your tongue? Or your throat? Like, at all?”

Sashi just smirked at him. “I’ve been training my body since I was three. This is just one more form of torture that has no effect on me whatsoever. I’m even able to drink a whole bottle of hot sauce without sweating.”

“That is so cool!” Boone grinned, “You think you can make my tongue that resistant? I’ve always wanted to be able to be able to eat my mom’s famous chili meatloaf without needing a whole gallon of milk afterwards.”

“That depends. Are you willing to spend the next six months eating two tablespoons of hot sauce a day, and not having any water, milk or bread afterwards?” “…Uhh, actually, I think I’m good.” “That’s what I thought.”

Taking a sip of his own cocoa (making sure to blow on it before drinking it), Penn sat back in his chair, looking almost as tired as his sidekick. But despite this, he still tried to stay somewhat positive. “Well, all this studying may be a pain, and taking a bunch of tests isn’t exactly going to be fun. But, on the bright side, we don’t need to study for Rippen’s final-” Even if it was a project that they would most likely get an F on, it was nice to not have another test, “-And just think, after this week is over, we get three whole weeks off from school.”

The trio of sophomores couldn’t help but smile at that. Nothing but video games, movies, sleeping in, relaxing and part-time heroing, not to mention Christmas and New Years. Yes, it was going to be great.

“I guess if there’s one good thing about finals week, it’s the fact that it goes by quickly,” Sashi commented.

“Yeah! Though, that does kinda makes things more stressful, since you feel like you have less time to study. And you still have to deal with a test every day,” Boone added, earning a small look from his friends that he didn’t really notice. “…But hey, we also get out at 1 during finals week, and who doesn’t love that? Am I right?” he asked, grinning.

Rolling his eyes a bit, Penn looked back down at his math notes. Maybe he could call it a day after a bit more studying, and they could all squeeze in some arcade action before heading down to the Odyssey Theatre. As he started reading, he heard the bell hanging above the cafe door ring, indicating that a new customer had just entered. Of course, he didn’t think much of it - it was a cold morning, so of course the place would be busy. It was only when they started speaking did Penn actually turn his head to look at them.

“Excuse me, everyone? Can we have your attention?” They were two men. They looked pretty normal, looking like any other person you would see. One of them, the one who spoke, looked pretty confident. He was fairly good looking too, and for a moment Penn thought maybe he was just an actor or salesman who was trying to sell something. As for the second guy, he looked a bit more serious, and a bit more anxious. He kept his hands in his pockets, and was leaning up against the door - and that’s when Penn noticed that it had been locked.

“What’s going on?” he heard Sashi ask quietly.

“Beats me,” Boone replied, shrugging. Other people around the cafe were whispering as well, but they were quickly silenced.

“Hey! He said, give us your attention!” the second guy shouted. After a pause, as if to make sure everyone was following the order, the first man spoke again.

“I can promise, this won’t take too long,” he told them, still smiling slightly, “And if you all cooperate, no one’s gonna get hurt.” Penn’s eyes widened. He didn’t mean… These guys weren’t actually going to do this, were they?

The man reached into his jacket and pulled out a gun, making several people gasp. Apparently, they were. As he walked towards the cafe’s serving counter - towards the cash register - his partner began speaking. “Alright, everyone get out your wallets, and keep your phones in your pockets. Don’t bother getting out your cash, just give us your whole wallets.”

Penn didn’t move. He honestly wasn’t sure if it was fear, or just disbelief. Just a few minutes ago, they were studying and hanging out, and now they were being robbed? Why were these guys even doing this? Had they robbed the cafe, or even other places in Middleburg before? He was certain that they had a pretty low crime rate - it was a strange place at times, but safe nonetheless - but Penn still supposed that a couple robberies here and there were likely in any city. Even so, the thought of it actually happening - of actually experiencing it…

“HEY!”

The part-time hero flinched, and his attention was back on the anxious man, who was glaring at some business woman across from Penn. She was frozen in place, her hand still halfway in her purse and clutching a cell phone. Penn could also now easily see the distinct form of a gun in the man’s coat pocket. No wonder he kept his hands in there.

“Purse. Now.” The woman obeyed, and the robber flung it over his shoulder before continuing his way around to everyone sitting in the cafe, all while his partner emptied out the cash register.

At that moment, it was like Penn’s body had finally given him permission to move, and he was able to look at his friends. Boone was looking nervous, and Sashi was looking pretty angry, but both of them had their wallets out on the table. Penn was sort of surprised at that, but at the same time, he couldn’t really blame them, and honestly he wouldn’t want them trying to fight these guys anyway. Even if Sashi could easily beat the robbers unarmed, he didn’t want her trying when they were.

‘But what about me?’ he asked himself. Wasn’t he the hero? Wasn’t he the leader? Hadn’t he faced down bigger threats than this before?

Shouldn’t he try to do something?

“Come on, folks, don’t make me wait.” The man was nearing their table now, and quickly grabbed Boone and Sashi’s wallets. If he concentrated, Penn could hear Sashi growling slightly - a verbal threat at the tip of her tongue - but she remained silent. Once the man had their wallets, he turned his attention to Penn. “You heard us, kid. Hand over your wallet.”

“I-…” If this had been any other situation, Penn would probably think of a good quip, or at least a comment. But this time, he couldn’t find the words. The man continued to glare at him, his eyes tired yet steely. He looked like the type of guy who had nothing to lose.

He also looked like he was losing patience. “Penn,” he heard Boone whisper, almost pleadingly.

“Listen to your friend here, kid. Hand it over.”

Penn hesitated for just a moment more before his hands started to move, shaking ever so slightly - not enough to be seen, but enough for Penn to feel them - as he got out his wallet. Once it was out, the man snatched it and stuffed it in his coat with the others. He started to move onto the next table, but then stopped, his eyes back on Penn.

The sophomore found himself stiffening up a bit. “…S-Something wrong?” he managed to ask.

“What’s that?” the robber asked, pointing at Penn’s belt - right at the MUHU.

“Oh, uh, it’s just my, uh… watch,” Penn lied, hoping he would buy it, “One of those, digital watch, belt-clip, things…”

“Looks pretty nice…” he said, standing in front of Penn once more and staring him down, “How about you hand it over?”

Penn’s eyes widened. This guy wanted his MUHU, probably just to pawn to some guy, or even melt it down for the metal? “What?! No!”

The entire cafe fell silent. Even his partner had taken a pause from dumping cash from the register into a bag. The man’s glare deepened, and before Penn even had a chance to regret his words, he had the end of a gun pointing at him.

Penn felt his body go cold, his eyes as wide as they could get. He was sure that if he could see himself, he would be entirely pale. Total fear… This was a feeling Penn actually knew quite well.

He had felt it on his very first mission, and he had felt it when he thought Boone was going to actually destroy him when he was a genie. He had felt it during the zombie mission, and during their adventure in the bathroom-themed temple. He definitely felt it whenever Rippen aimed an arrow or a blaster or any sort of weapon at him, and he felt it when he thought he was going to be trapped in the nothingness between dimensions forever.

Yes, fear was nothing new to the part-time hero… But this was the first time he had felt completely paralyzed by it.

He heard the gun click. “Last chance, kid… Hand over the watch.” Yet Penn still couldn’t move or even blink, save for the now much more noticeable shaking he was doing.

“…Come on, man, put that thing away.” Penn flinched slightly when he felt a hand pull off his MUHU. When had the other robber come over? “Just take the thing from him and move on!” his partner told him, smirking a bit as he tossed the device in with all their other stolen cash, “Not like he could stop you. Now let’s finish up here.”

As the criminals finally moved on from their table, Penn still felt like he was frozen. Everything around him seemed sorta faded and disconnected. He still couldn’t move, and he could barely hear Boone and Sashi whispering at him, asking if he was alright. Eventually though, once the robbers left and everyone got on their cell phones to call for the police, Penn managed to calm down a bit.

But he still remained silent.

Needless to say, the trio didn’t get much studying done after that incident, mostly because they had to be questioned by police. Afterwards, none of them really felt like doing anything, so they just started walking towards the Odyssey.

“…Hey, Penn?” Boone finally asked, putting a hand on his best friend’s shoulder, “You gonna be okay?”

“…Yeah,” Penn said quietly, not even looking at the wiseman.

“…Well, you know,” Boone started to say, “The police are gonna catch those guys. And, I’m sure they’ll get your MUHU back. I mean, no one besides us knows what is so, so who’s even going to buy it? And, even if you can’t, I’m sure Phyllis could get you a new one! …Maybe.”

“Yeah, maybe…” Even without looking at his friends, Penn knew that they were frowning at him, looking concerned. But as much as he wanted to try and convince his friends that he would be fine, he just couldn’t do it. Mostly because he didn’t even know it himself.

With nothing else to say, the Dream Team silently walked into the movie theatre. But despite this, and the fact that Phyllis herself was working on something, their entrance didn’t go unnoticed. “Hm? Children are early?” she glanced over at them, “What is special occasion? And, what is wrong with faces?”

“We were robbed, Phyllis,” Sashi told her bluntly, still a bit angry over the situation but keeping her cool, “The police are going to try and find our stuff but, they don’t know how much they’ll be able to get back…”

“I see…” Her eyes immediately noticed Penn’s bare belt, and she couldn’t help but scowl a bit, though not at Penn. “…MUHU has tracking device built into it. While you are on mission, I can track it down if you like.”

“Uhh, you sure you wanna try and find these guys, Phyllis?” Boone asked, “I mean… They might have, you know, guns and stuff.”

“I will prepare myself, do not worry,” she told them, knowing very well that she could handle a few common criminals, “Now, would you like to get headstart on mission? Get used to world, possibly gain advantage.”

“…Actually Phyllis,” Penn started to say, finally lifting his head up and making eye contact with someone, “I don’t think I should do this mission today. In fact, I think I should just, sit this one out…”

His friends gave him a surprised look. “What?!” “Penn, no!” Sashi put a hand on his shoulder. “Look, you can’t let what happened today psych you out!”

“Yeah!” Boone agreed, “Just cause you got robbed doesn’t mean you’re not a hero!” He noticed Sashi giving him a bit of a glare. “And uh, well, what are the chances we get zapped into a universe with robbers anyway?” The sidekick facepalmed.

Penn sighed. “Look, guys, I know you’re trying to help, but-”

“I know you were freaked out back there,” Sashi interrupted, “But, with us helping you, you have nothing to be afraid of!”

“We know you can do this, Penn!” Boone added, “We-!”

“Enough.” The three sophomores looked over at Phyllis, who was now walking over to them, “You two should learn to hear better.” Of course, she earned a small scowl from Sashi for that, but ignored it. “Penn Zero did not say that he cannot do mission. He said that he _should not_ do mission.” She was now standing right in front of the red-headed sophomore. “It is not just fear holding you back, is it?”

Penn wanted to look away, but Phyllis had a way of demanding attention without even saying anything. And as she stared him down, he notice her eyes soften a bit, even if the rest of her face stayed stern and firm. “Now… Why should you not do mission?”

“Because… Because I completely froze up,” Penn told her, his tone almost one of guilt than of hurt or fear, “Look, I’ve been scared before. But I’ve always managed to do something or say something or just, take any kind of action to try and save myself and win the mission. But… This was the first time that I did nothing.” His frown remained, though he did tighten his fists. “I had the chance to do something, maybe try and stop them even, but I did nothing…”

Phyllis remained silent, as if somehow knowing that Penn had more to say. So, he continued. “So, what if that happens again? What if I get so scared that I freeze up and, and what if I cost us the mission…?” His gaze fell once more. “Besides… How can I even call myself a hero if-”

“Part time hero.”

Penn blinked. “What?”

“You are part time hero,” Phyllis stated.

“…I, I know that Phyllis,” Penn told her, looking a bit confused, “And that’s what I was saying. How can I-”

“You are thinking that you are hero,” she told him, “That you need to be hero all the time. But you are not. You are just a boy, still a child. And there are people in this universe that are more intimidating than Rippen.” Had Penn not been still confused, he would’ve laughed a bit at that.

“Uhh, Phyllis?” Boone loudly whispered, “We’re supposed to be making Penn feel better!” However, Phyllis just ignored him and continued.

“In this universe, you are no one special. Yes, you are special to friends and family, and you are talented and good, but you are not a special person. You are not a hero here, which means you are not required to save the day here.”

“…But, but even if I am just a part time hero,” Penn started to argue, “Shouldn’t I have done something? I’m sure my parents would have-”

“No they would not,” Phyllis interrupted, “Depending on situation, they may also choose to do nothing. Because they are only part-time heroes too, and in this universe, it is not their mission to always save day. In this universe, it is their mission to stay alive and take care of you, just like how it is your mission to stay alive and grow up. Just because you have heroic skills, does not mean you must use them.”

“…Thaaat still doesn’t make sense to me,” Penn admitted. Thankfully, Phyllis was a very patient woman.

“Well then, let me ask you this, Penn Zero. Would you have wanted your friends to take action today? To try and fight off robbers and risk own lives just to maybe save the day?”

“Of course not! But-!”

“Exactly!” Sashi shouted, understanding what Phyllis was trying to tell him, “PZ, do you know how much I wanted to crush those robbers’ skulls? How much I wanted to rip that gun out of their hands and tell them to get lost?!”

“Uh, well, I’m pretty sure I know,” he answered, “I mean, I did hear you growling.”

“So, because I didn’t try to stop them, does that make me a bad sidekick for not trying to fight them?” Sashi asked.

“Or me a bad wiseman for not trying to think of a way to get out of there?” Boone added.

“No way! You guys were just-” He paused. “…Just, trying to protect yourselves. Just like everyone else in there.”

“Now you are understanding,” Phyllis nodded, “I think you can agree that anyone can be hero.” Penn had more than enough experience to know that - both from the variety of people he had zapped into, and from the many different - sometimes completely ordinary - types of people that had helped them complete their mission. “However, sometimes situation is too much for just anyone to be hero, and the best solution is to just do nothing. To keep yourself safe.”

“…” Penn smiled a bit, understanding now. Though after a moment, he did frown again. “But… What if I freeze up again on a mission? I mean, if it’s happened once, it might happen again, right?”

“True. But, you have not freezed up in front of other threats, have you?” Phyllis asked.

“Well, no…” And a lot of those threats had bigger and deadlier than just a gun. In a way, it didn’t make total sense. Why would he stare down dragons and swords and giant robots, but freeze up in front of a gun? Yet, maybe it did make sense… “I- I guess when I’m on missions, I usually have some sort of advantage on a mission that makes the threats not so threatening. Or I focus on the mission itself, and make sure that I do all I can to complete it.”

“And uh,” Boone cleared his throat, “In case you forgot, you also have two pretty great teammates here to help you on missions too.”

Penn gave a small chuckle, smiling as his friends wrapped an arm around him. “Heh, yeah, that too.”

“Well then,” Phyllis started to say, smiling back at her young heroes, “I believe you have nothing to worry about. So, would you like mission then, or would you still like to take break?”

“…” Penn thought about it for a moment, then smiled once more. “I think I can handle it.”

Within a few minutes, they were standing on the zap platform, getting ready to go into a dimension that looked like a city (which looked very similar to Paris, France) made out of bread. Penn felt his nerves return slightly, the memory of what happened just a couple hours ago still fresh in his mind. But Phyllis’ words were also there, and with his friends by his side, Penn took a deep breath and gave a determined look, ready to take on whatever this universe had to offer.

He may have been only a part time hero, after all, but was still a hero - and he was going to do all he could to be that hero (but only in the dimensions where it was required of him, of course).

Phyllis watched as the trio disappeared, and after a few minutes of watching to make sure that there was no technical difficulties or dangers that she would need to zap them out of, she left the machine. Climbing down the ladder, she then grabbed a mini tracking remote off her desk before heading into the storage room where her faithful pet bear was resting. Looking up at her, Phyllis just gave her a small smirk.

“Come along, Karen. We have MUHU to get back, and two robbers to take care of.”

**THE END**


End file.
